For untold years, the perfectly preserved mummy had lain forgotten in the basement of Boston's Crispin Museum. Its sudden rediscovery by museum staff is both a major coup and an attention-grabbing mystery. The mummy - to all appearances, an ancient Egyptian artifact - seems a ghoulish godsend for the financially struggling institution. Medical examiner Maura Isles soon discovers a macabre message hidden within the corpse - horrifying proof that this "centuries-old" relic is instead a modern-day murder victim.

The Mephisto Club: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel

PECCAVI. The Latin word is scrawled in blood at the scene of a young woman's brutal murder: I HAVE SINNED. It's a chilling Christmas greeting for Boston medical examiner Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli, who swiftly link the victim to controversial celebrity psychiatrist Joyce O'Donnell, Jane's professional nemesis and member of a sinister cabal called the Mephisto Club.

Vanish: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel

A blessed event becomes a nightmare for pregnant homicide detective Jane Rizzoli when she finds herself on the wrong side of a hostage crisis in this timely and relentless new thriller from the New York Times best-selling author of Body Double.

Ice Cold

Something terrible has happened in the snowbound village of Kingdom Come, Wyoming, where 12 eerily identical houses stand dark and abandoned. Meals remain untouched on dining room tables, cars are still in garages, and the town's residents have vanished into thin air. This is the disturbing setting where vacationing medical examiner Maura Isles and her traveling companions find themselves trapped during a ferocious snowstorm.

Body Double

Returning home from a trip to Paris, Boston medical examiner Maura Isles confronts a nightmarish scene. Police cruisers line her street and slumped in a car at the end of Maura's driveway is a dead woman, her head bloodied by a gunshot wound. Cops and neighbors gape at her as she approaches. Only when Maura looks at the victim does she understand why everyone is so shocked by her arrival. The dead woman looks exactly like Maura.

Last to Die: A Rizzoli and Isles Novel, Book 10

For the second time in his short life, Teddy Clock has survived a massacre. Two years ago, he barely escaped when his entire family was slaughtered. Now, at 14, in a hideous echo of the past, Teddy is the lone survivor of his foster family’s mass murder. Orphaned once more, the traumatized teenager has nowhere to turn - until the Boston PD puts Detective Jane Rizzoli on the case. Determined to protect this young man, Jane discovers that what seemed like a coincidence is one part of a killer’s mission.

The Sinner

The cloistered grounds of the convent have traditionally represented a place of faith and peace. Now, that peace is shattered as two nuns are found, one dead, one mortally wounded. The killings appear to be without motive, without an obvious suspect, and are further complicated by the murder and mutilation of a third woman. Together, medical examiner Maura Isles and intense, moody homicide detective Jane Rizzoli uncover an ancient horror that connects these terrible slaughters.

The Silent Girl: A Rizzoli and Isles Novel

In the murky shadows of an alley lies a female’s severed hand. On the tenement rooftop above is the corpse belonging to that hand, a red-haired woman dressed all in black, the body nearly decapitated. Two strands of silver hair — not human — cling to her body. They are Rizzoli’s only clues, but they’re enough for her and medical examiner Maura Isles to make a startling discovery: This violent death had a chilling prequel.

The Apprentice: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel

It is a boiling summer in Boston. Adding to the city's woes is a series of shocking crimes that end in abduction and death. The pattern suggests one man: "The Surgeon," serial killer Warren Hoyt, known for his partial dissection of his victims, and recently thrown behind bars. Police can only assume an acolyte is at large, a maniac basing his attacks on the twisted medical techniques of the madman he so admires.

Die Again: Rizzoli & Isles

Boston Detective Jane Rizzoli is on the case of a big game hunter found dead in his apartment, alone with the body of a beautiful white snow leopard he had recently been commissioned to procure and stuff for a high-profile museum in the area. Medical examiner Maura Isles connects the case to a number of seemingly unrelated deaths where the victims have all been found hanging upside down, the hallmark of a leopard's kill.

The Bone Garden

Julia Hamill has made a horrifying discovery on the grounds of her new home in rural Massachusetts: a skull buried in the rocky soil � human, female, and, according to the trained eye of Boston medical examiner Maura Isles, scarred with the unmistakable marks of murder.

Harvest

In Harvest, the book that introduced us to Tess Gerritsen's unique blend of medical expertise, harrowing suspense, and brilliantly crafted plot twists, the dark side of medical research is exposed. Harvest vividly portrays a young woman doctor challenging a world where medical miracles and greed fuel a lethal conspiracy - and the bright lights of the O.R. conceal the ultimate corruption of genius.

Life Support

Dr. Toby Harper works the night shift in an emergency room. She spends her daytime hours alone with her mother who suffers from Alzheimer's disease. When elderly Alzheimer's patients from the same retirement home start dying mysteriously, Toby is the only one suspicious enough to investigate. As a result she finds herself, her mother, and her own sanity at risk.

Bloodstream: A Novel of Medical Suspense

Tranquility, Maine seems like the perfect place for Dr. Claire Elliot to shelter her adolescent son from the distractions of the big city - until a deadly epidemic threatens to destroy everyone she loves.

Girl Missing

She's young. She's beautiful. And her corpse, laid out in the office of Boston medical examiner Cat Novak, betrays no secrets - except for a notebook clutched in one stiff hand, seven numbers scrawled inside. When a second victim is discovered, Cat begins to fear that a serial killer is stalking the city streets: a shadowy madman without mercy or apparent motive. The police are sceptical. The mayor won't listen. And Cat's chief suspect is one of the city's most prominent citizens.

Speaking in Bones: A Temperance Brennan Novel

No one speaks the language of suspense more brilliantly than Kathy Reichs, number-one New York Times best-selling author of the acclaimed Temperance Brennan series. In Speaking in Bones, the forensic anthropologist finds herself drawn into a world of dark secrets and dangerous beliefs, where good and evil blur. Professionally, Temperance Brennan knows exactly what to do - test, analyze, identify. Her personal life is another story.

Gravity

Emma Watson, a brilliant research physician, has been training for years for the mission of a lifetime: to study living beings in space. Jack McCallum, Emma's estranged husband, has shared her dream of space travel, but a medical condition has grounded and embittered him. He must watch from the sidelines as his wife prepares for her first mission to the international Space Station.

Never Say Die

Twenty years after her father's plane crashes in the jungles of Southeast Asia, Willy Jane Maitland is finally tracking his last moves. She recognizes the danger, but her search for the truth is the only thing that matters.

In Their Footsteps

The quiet scandal surrounding her parents' death has always haunted Beryl Tavistock. Now she's asking dangerous questions and the answers are proving that the past does not die easily. Pulled into a world of espionage, Beryl quickly discovers that she needs help, and ex-CIA agent Richard Wolf is her only hope. But in a world where trust is a double-edged sword, friends become enemies and enemies are killers...

Publisher's Summary

For untold years, the perfectly preserved mummy had lain forgotten in the dusty basement of Boston's Crispin Museum. Now its sudden rediscovery by museum staff is both a major coup and an attention-grabbing mystery. Dubbed "Madam X," the mummy - to all appearances, an ancient Egyptian artifact - seems a ghoulish godsend for the financially struggling institution. But medical examiner Maura Isles soon discovers a macabre message hidden within the corpse - horrifying proof that this "centuries-old" relic is instead a modern-day murder victim.

To Maura and Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli, the forensic evidence is unmistakable, its implications terrifying. And when the grisly remains of yet another woman are found in the hidden recesses of the museum, it becomes chillingly clear that a maniac is at large - and is now taunting them.

Archaeologist Josephine Pulcillo's blood runs cold when the killer's cryptic missives are discovered, and her darkest dread becomes real when the carefully preserved corpse of yet a third victim is left in her car like a gruesome offering - or perhaps a ghastly promise of what's to come.

The twisted killer's familiarity with post-mortem rituals suggests to Maura and Jane that he may have scientific expertise in common with Josephine. Only Josephine knows that her stalker shares a knowledge even more personally terrifying: details of a dark secret she had thought forever buried.

Now Maura must summon her own dusty knowledge of ancient death traditions to unravel his twisted endgame. And when Josephine vanishes, Maura and Jane have precious little time to derail the Archaeology Killer before he adds another chilling piece to his monstrous collection.

Have liked the series and will continue to give it a listen as more are produced. As to this particular episode, a couple of points are probably worth noting. 1) For fans of Maura Isles, you'll be disappointed. She was really on the periphery of this story - it could easily have been written without her. 2) For those who really need a "production" rather than a book read to them, you probably won't be happy with this. You can't tell a character by voice inflection with this narrator - not a biggie with me, but it seems to be an issue with a number of people who write some pretty scathing reviews. All in all, steady fodder from Gerritsen that I would recommend.

Her books just keep getting better and better. Even when you think the story is over and then find out it isn't, you aren't disappointed. When you're sure the book is going to end like many others, you are wrong. I can't wait for her next book.

This book is a real keepsake. The plot moves along rapidly with thrilling twists and turns all the way to the end, which winds up being a twist in itself. Vivid imagery enables the reader to feel and see the sands of Egypt as well as experience the macabre death scenes. Full of suspense, The Keepsake, keeps you wondering what is around each corner.

The only drawback in the audio is that the narrator does not carry each character individually with her voice; it is sometimes difficult to determine who is speaking and more like having a book read to you. The story is brilliant if one can move beyond the voice of the narrator.

I have really liked some of this author's previous books (The Sinner is really good)- but this one is lacking in all areas- Terrible narration - this person would be better suited to narrate Nancy Drew mysteries with her little girl voice. I had to make myself get through this one hoping it would get better- it never did!!

I love mysteries of all types and have read a few of Gerritsen's other books. I found her previous work just OK (she's no P.D. James) but I didn't dislike the books. However, listening to her material has changed my mind. Too much melodrama and hackneyed phrased as in "she slapped the file photos on the table" - the cop "slapped" those photos several times throughout the story. The dialogue is unrealistic and everyone sounds like they barely got through elementary school. They're supposed to be professionals, but they don't sound like. I was a bit insulted - as if the author was writing for an audience of 9 year olds. The reader played everyone as a breathy female which added to my dislike and furthered the melodramatic tone. However, the one positive note I have is I liked the ending. Since I paid for this audio book, I forced myself to listen to it, but this will be my last Gerritsen.

This is, by far, my favourite Tess Gerritsen book. I thoroughly enjoyed this book but the narrator's voice almost ruined it for me. I highly recommend this audiobook as long as you can get past the narrator's voice. With her reading, it's so hard to distinguish between who's speaking because they all sound the same! I found myself "rewinding" or scrolling back ever so often to figure out which character was actually speaking.
But to end on a positive note, this book is simply great :)

The storyline was OK, but the writing left a little to be desired. Used the same trite phrases over and over. I agree with the reviewer who said you would be rolling your eyes every few minutes. It was a decent listen, but nowhere near the top of my list.

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